An explosion at La. olefins plant leaves 2 dead, 76 injured

AKRON, OHIO — News of a tragic explosion at an olefins plant in Louisiana is featured in this week's Material Insights video.

Two workers were killed and 76 others injured in a June 13 explosion at a plant operated by Williams Cos. Inc. in Geismar, La. The cause of the explosion remains unknown. Market watchers said the accident may affect North American polyethylene resin markets by tightening supplies of ethylene feedstock.

A polypropylene outage at a plant operated by Formosa Plastics Corp. also is featured in this week's video. Formosa has declared force majeure for PP at its plant in Point Comfort, Texas, after several unplanned outages. A company spokesman said no date has been set for a full re-start of PP production at the site.

The video wraps up with news that Eastman Chemical Co. is launching a seven-year, $1.6 billion expansion of its headquarters in Kingsport, Tenn. The expansion is expected to benefit many Eastman businesses, including its Tritan-brand copolyester unit. The project should be completed in 2020, which will be the 100th anniversary of Eastman's presence in Kingsport.